How to Type Umlaut Marks on Mac and PC GA S REGULAR Menu Lifewire Tech for Humans Newsletter! Search Close GO Software & Apps > Apps
How to Type Characters With Umlaut Marks
Keyboard shortcuts offer a fast solution
By Jacci Howard Bear Jacci Howard Bear Writer A graphic designer, writer, and artist who writes about and teaches print and web design. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on May 2, 2021 Reviewed by Lisa Mildon Reviewed by Lisa Mildon Southern New Hampshire University Lisa Mildon is a Lifewire writer and an IT professional with 30 years of experience. Her writing has appeared in Geekisphere and other publications. lifewire's editorial guidelines Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Apps Best Apps Payment Services What to Know
Windows: Select Win+R > enter charmap > double-click the character > select Copy > Ctrl+V to paste, or use Alt+numeric code.Mac: Press and hold Option+u > type the letter or use the Character Viewer program. This article explains how to create an umlaut on a Windows PC, a Mac, and in HTML. What Is an Umlaut
The umlaut diacritic mark, also called a diaeresis or trema, is formed by two small dots over a letter, in most cases, a vowel. In the case of the lowercase i, those two dots replace the single dot. The umlaut diacritic marks appear on uppercase and lowercase vowels: Ä Ë Ï Ö Ü Ÿ ä ë ï ö ü ÿ Many languages, including German, use umlauts. A few of those languages have loanwords in English, which are words English borrowed from the other language. For example, the French word, naïve. The umlaut diacritic carries over into English when used in foreign branding, for example, in advertising or for other special effects. The popular ice cream company Häagen-Daz illustrates such usage. Different Strokes for Different Platforms
Several keyboard shortcuts render an umlaut from the keyboard, depending on the platform. Windows Keyboard Shortcuts
On Windows PCs, enable Num Lock. Press and hold the Alt key while typing the appropriate number code on the numeric keypad to create characters with umlaut marks. Uppercase Lowercase Ä: Alt+0196 ä: Alt+0228 Ë: Alt+0203 ë: Alt+0235 Ï: Alt+0207 ï: Alt+0239 Ö: Alt+0214 ö: Alt+0246 Ü: Alt+0220 ü: Alt+0252 Ÿ: Alt+0159 ÿ: Alt+0255 Windows Character Map
You need a numeric keypad to enter numeric codes. The numbers at the top of the keyboard, above the alphabet, won't work in this way. If you don't have a numeric keypad on the right side of your keyboard, or the Num Lock key isn't present on your keyboard, copy and paste accented characters from the Character Map in Windows. Press Win+R to open the Run dialog box, then enter charmap. Double-click the character you want to copy so that it appears in the Characters to copy text box. Select Copy to copy the character, after which you can paste it anywhere with the Ctrl+V keyboard shortcut. The Windows character map is also a great way to learn which hotkeys produce different characters. Select a character in the Character Map to view the Keystroke information at the bottom of the window, which describes which keys make that character. Mac Shortcuts and Character Viewer
On a Mac, press and hold the Option key while typing the letter u. Then type the letter to which you want to add the umlaut. The Character Viewer program in macOS is another way to access these special characters. You can get there from most text boxes in most programs through the Edit > Emoji & Symbols menu. Another way to access these characters on a Mac is to use the PopChar X program, which is like a Mac version of the Windows Character Map utility. Mobile Devices
On an iOS or Android device, access umlaut marks by tapping and holding a particular key. For example, tap and hold the uppercase or lowercase O key, then slide your finger over to ö or Ö to use it in texts, emails, and other documents. HTML
Computer programmers use Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), a foundational computer language, to build, describe, and define the content of web pages. You'll find it on almost every page on the web. To use HTML codes for German and other languages to render characters with an umlaut, type & (the ampersand symbol), followed by the letter (like A), the letters uml, and then a semicolon (;). This string must not include any spaces between the characters. In HTML, the characters with an umlaut might appear smaller than the surrounding text. To make the text flow better, enlarge the font for those characters. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Make a Cent Sign on a Keyboard How to Type a Grave Accent Mark on Any Keyboard How to Add Acute Accent Marks on Mac and PC Type Characters With Circumflex Accent Marks How to Make an Arrow on a Keyboard How to Make a Divide Sign on a Keyboard How to Make a Bullet Point on a Keyboard How to Make the Copyright Symbol on Your Computer How to Open the Emoji Keyboard on a Mac How to Use Alt Codes How to Add Accents in Google Docs How to Type a Tilde Mark How to Insert Special Characters in Mac Mail The Best Windows Keyboard Shortcuts in 2022 How to Add a Degree Symbol in Word How to Add Accents in Word Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies